Needham's own Timothy Kenslea, history teacher at Needham High, has written a fascinating account of a large New England family and their courtships, engagements and marriages in the early years of Massachusetts. 

From the book jacket:  "Delving deeply into a previously unexplored trove of family letters, Kenslea has expertly woven interlocking narratives that dramatize an era, the evolving institution of marriage and the yearnings of the heart."

If you're curious about a famous New England family and affairs of the heart in the generation after the Revolution, than this is the book for you.  The Sedgwicks in Love: Courtship, Engagement, and Marriage in the Early Republic is autographed by the author.

"...Kenslea's nonfiction narrative account of the rle of marriage choices in this brave new world is an American incursion into Jane Austen territory."

—Boston Globe

 http://www.boston.com/news/local/articles/2005/11/10/sedgwicks_stories_offer_glimpse_into_early_american_relationships/